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Calendly vs Phorest

Calendly logo

Calendly

All industries

Scheduling automation platform for eliminating back-and-forth

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Phorest logo

Phorest

Beauty & Salon

Salon software that grows your business

From
$99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Calendly has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Calendly the free plan allows one event type and one calendar connection, so it cannot handle different meeting formats; Phorest no price is published for any of the seven plans, and every route ends at a quote request
  • They diverge on capability: Calendly covers Calendar sync, Phorest covers Appointment booking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Calendly and Phorest actually diverge.

Attributes where Calendly and Phorest differ
AttributeCalendlyPhorest
Starting priceFree$99/month
Pricing modelUnknownsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Ios, Android, Api
CategoryAll industriesBeauty & Salon
Founded20132003

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Calendly

  • Calendar sync
  • Automated scheduling
  • Custom availability
  • Time zone detection
  • Reminder emails
  • Buffer time
  • Meeting polls
  • Embed on website

Only in Phorest

  • Appointment booking
  • Client management
  • Point of sale
  • Marketing automation
  • Reputation management
  • Staff management
  • Inventory tracking
  • Business reports

Both cover

  • Stripe

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Calendly

  • Sales meetingsnot Phorest
  • Interview schedulingnot Phorest
  • Customer callsnot Phorest
  • Office hoursnot Phorest
  • Webinar registrationnot Phorest

Phorest

  • Salon and spa appointment booking with client recordsnot Calendly
  • Marketing, memberships and staff management for beauty businessesnot Calendly

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Calendly

  • The free plan allows one event type and one calendar connection, so it cannot handle different meeting formats
  • Automated reminders and multiple calendars need Standard at $10 per seat per month
  • Round-robin routing, lead qualification and Salesforce integration require Teams at $16 per seat per month
  • SAML single sign-on, audit logs and domain control are Enterprise only, starting at $15,000 a year
  • Advertised prices are the annual rates

Phorest

  • No price is published for any of the seven plans, and every route ends at a quote request
  • There is no free trial at all, which the company states plainly
  • The product is described as suited to 3 or more staff, so a solo operator is outside the intended range
  • The branded booking app requires the Ultimate plan, and two way SMS, memberships, lead management and the ads manager are all Elite only

Pricing, plan by plan

Calendly

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 event type
    • 1 calendar connection
    • Basic confirmation email
  • Standard$10/month
    • Unlimited event types
    • Multiple calendars (up to 6)
    • Integrations with HubSpot, Mailchimp, Stripe, PayPal
  • Teams$16/month
    • All Standard features
    • Salesforce integration
    • Round-robin meetings
  • Enterprise$15000/year
    • All Teams features
    • Salesforce routing lookup
    • Microsoft Dynamics 365

Phorest

$99/month
  • Grow$99/month
    • Appointment booking
    • Client management
    • POS
  • Elevate$179/month
    • Everything in Grow
    • Advanced marketing
    • Online booking
  • Innovate$299/month
    • Everything in Elevate
    • Multi-location
    • Advanced analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose Calendly if

  • You need calendar sync.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want automated scheduling.
Calendly review

Choose Phorest if

  • You need appointment booking.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want client management.
Phorest review

Questions people ask

Is Calendly or Phorest better?
Neither clearly leads. Calendly starts at Free and Phorest at $99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Calendly or Phorest?
Calendly has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Calendly and $99/month for Phorest.
Does Calendly or Phorest run on more platforms?
Calendly runs on Web, iOS, Android. Phorest runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
Can I use Calendly for free?
Yes. Calendly has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Phorest starts at $99/month.
What is Calendly best used for?
Calendly is most often used for sales meetings, interview scheduling, customer calls, office hours. Of those, sales meetings and interview scheduling are not what Phorest is typically brought in for.
What can Calendly do that Phorest cannot?
Calendly covers Calendar sync, Automated scheduling, Custom availability, Time zone detection. Phorest covers Appointment booking, Client management, Point of sale, Marketing automation. Both handle Stripe.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Calendly: Does the free tier include automatic reminders?

No. The free plan only includes a basic confirmation email when someone books. Automated reminder workflows, SMS reminders, and follow-up sequences require the Standard plan ($10/month or higher).

Source
Calendly: Can I offer multiple meeting types on the free plan?

Only one event type can be active at a time. You can create multiple event types, but only one booking link works simultaneously. Switching between different meeting lengths requires manually activating another event type.

Source
Calendly: Does Calendly work with Apple Calendar and iCloud?

No longer for new users. As of August 20, 2024, new users cannot connect iCloud or Apple Calendar. Existing connections continue to work, but Calendly ended support for new Apple Calendar integrations citing Apple's security changes.

Source
Calendly: What platforms can I use Calendly on?

Calendly is available on Web, iOS, and Android. Browser extensions are available for Safari. There are no dedicated Windows or Mac desktop applications.

Source
Calendly: What does the Standard plan ($10/month) add over free?

Unlimited event types, multiple calendar connections (up to 6), integrations with HubSpot, Mailchimp, Salesforce, Stripe, PayPal, Zapier, and webhooks, plus automated reminders and email sequences.

Source
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